


A Spirited Story

by EternallyEcho



Category: Star Fox Series, Super Smash Brothers
Genre: Alternate History, Alternate Universe - Spirits, Alternate Universe - Video Game World, Awkward Dates, Awkwardness, Bombs, Cameos, Caves, Chases, Cross-Posted on Tumblr, Crossover, Crushes, Drama, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Romance, Everyone Is Gay, Falco's Embarrassing Crushes, Falling In Love, Flirting, Fluff and Crack, Fluff and Humor, Gay, Gift Fic, Gift Work, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Implied Relationships, In Character, In-Jokes, Kissing, M/M, Magic, Mine Cart, Multiverse, One Shot, Our Spirits Are Different, Out of Character, Pokemon, Prior to DLC, Rare Pairings, References to Canon, Requited Love, Romance, Shipping, Shipping Out of Control, Some Humor, Spirits, Spirits Are Crazy, Suggestive Themes, Teleportation, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Love, Wolf is Kinda Smart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-25
Updated: 2019-07-25
Packaged: 2020-07-19 06:44:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19969729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EternallyEcho/pseuds/EternallyEcho
Summary: Oh wow, the tags didn't stop you, huh? In that case, welcome!This is a lengthy one-shot that I made for two friends of mine ages ago, shortly after Super Smash Bros. Ultimate came out. They both like video games, and Star Fox characters in particular, so two-for-one worked out.It was originally posted on Tumblr, where it gained a little more traction than I was anticipating. So, I've finally decided to add it onto a fanfiction website too! (Because I'm so sure the Smash archives needed this.)Anyway, this is a fanfic mostly starring the Star Fox trio of Smash, but also features a few additional characters in some uncommon (and gay) pairings. It's also a story that kind of explores the ideas of Spirits having a different perspective on life based on the fact that they're not the original characters themselves. And a little bit of a Super Smash celebration in itself.So, if you're still interested, then read on and enjoy!





	A Spirited Story

**Author's Note:**

> Oh wow, the tags didn't stop you, huh? In that case, welcome!
> 
> This is a lengthy one-shot that I made for two friends of mine ages ago, shortly after Super Smash Bros. Ultimate came out. They both like video games, and Star Fox characters in particular, so two-for-one worked out.
> 
> It was originally posted on Tumblr, where it gained a little more traction than I was anticipating. So, I've finally decided to add it onto a fanfiction website too! (Because I'm so sure the Smash archives needed this.)
> 
> Anyway, this is a fanfic mostly starring the Star Fox trio of Smash, but also features a few additional characters in some uncommon (and gay) pairings. It's also a story that kind of explores the ideas of Spirits having a different perspective on life based on the fact that they're not the original characters themselves. And a little bit of a Super Smash celebration in itself.
> 
> So, if you're still interested, then read on and enjoy!

Along a wide, sunset bathed cliffside location, two hands drifted across the sky, hovering over a gathering of numerous creatures of different backgrounds.

An orderly hand pointed out with its finger, slowly flowing around the cast herd below, as it neared one.

“Fox!” An omnipotent voice thundered from the skies.

“Another fight, then.” Fox smirked and readied his blaster. A red coin flashed below his feet. “So be it. Let’s go!”

“No.”

“Wait, what?”

Drifting away, the hand floated off, and the red circle beneath Fox had vanished.

“…What was the point of that?” The pilot folded his arms and watched as the hand flew off. “…Pikachu, come on. Wasn’t that weird?”

“Pika pi.”

“Oh, don’t give me that.” Fox’s ears lowered as the yellow mouse beside him chuckled.

“Sorry, it’s too fun.” He scratched his ear and twitched his tail. “You’d think that it would make more sense for someone like me to talk, considering that you and your friends can.”

“Friend.” Fox rolled his eyes. “Falco is my friend, Wolf is not.”

“…I meant those other animal people.” Pikachu lifted his paw and counted. “If I have their names correct, that includes Peppy, Slippy, uh…Krystal, and—”

“Ok, ok, you got me there.” Fox shrugged. “Still, I don’t get why those hands can be so indecisive. I mean, the guy’s called ‘Master Hand,’ shouldn’t he be more of a master of his own fate kind of being?”

“Come to think of it, should we even be addressing him and the crazy one as males?” Pikachu tilted his head, watching the other hand circle through the sky, waving its fingers about wildly. “Just because they have masculine voices, that doesn’t really confirm if we’re meant to address them as such.”

“They want to be addressed that way, last I heard.” Fox rubbed behind his head. “I know they’re just floating hands with supreme powers in this realm, but they are alive in their own sense, so…” Fox sighed. “This is a complete separate conversation from what I wanted to talk about.”

“Ridley!”

“Ah, is this the part where we all yell out, ‘Ridley confirmed!’” Pikachu smirked as a crowd some distance from him and Fox did just that. “Ah…that never gets old.”

“Samus kind of hates that.” Fox glanced over as the armored warrior seethed. “A lot.”

“Yeah…and I have some memory of fighting him too, now that you mention it.” Pikachu shrugged. “But hey, he’s oddly good with Pichu.”

“So is that big cat guy from your universe!” Fox blinked. “…Is he a guy cat?”

“The one with us today happens to be, yes.” Pikachu chuckled. “Got your head spinning a bit, huh?”

“Ugh, honestly.”

“King K. Rool!”

“And there’s Donkey Kong’s most hated,” pointed out Fox, as a blue light burst from under a large crocodile with a crown.

“Sure…his, uh, ‘most hated,’ let’s go with that.”

“They’re enemies, from what I was told.” Fox raised an eyebrow. “Did I miss something?”

“Uh…someone else should explain it to you.”

“Duck Hunt! Duck Hunt! Duck Hunt!”

“What the hell is he doing now?”

“Probably trying to make that sound ridiculous if he can mash it quickly enough.” Pikachu snickered. “If you’re fast enough, it sounds like—”

“Something really immature.”

“Um…well…” Pikachu puffed out his cheek. “Buzzkill, dude.”

“I’m just saying.”

“Yeah, you’re right, I guess.”

“Shulk!”

“Pit!”

“Ice Climbers!”

“Team Battle!”

“Time!”

“Stamina!”

“Time!”

“Huh.” Pikachu scratched his nose. “Guess they’re swapping rules along with us.”

“This is the first time I haven’t heard them yell ‘Stock’ in ages.” Fox clutched his head. “It’s almost always the case.”

“Pretty much.”

“Ready to Fight!”

Disks of earth erupted from the ground, carrying off the six selected fighters. A massive portal opened up, carrying them off to a spacious field with a train rushing through the area.

“Ooh…that’s going to suck for them.” Pikachu winced. “Spirit Train gets a little crowded, you know?”

“It’s not exactly my first choice either,” admitted Fox. “Though…it’s nice to feel the rush of the wind on a moving vehicle.”

“You would enjoy that.” Pikachu shook his head and ambled away. “Ah well. Let’s get going.”

“Going?”

“Yeah.” Pikachu turned back and blinked. “What, you’re not going to just sit here and wait for them to drag us off in who knows how long that fight’s going for, are you?”

“Well, I…I just figured…”

“Oh my gosh, you were.”

“Hey, come on!” Fox folded his arms. “What else are we supposed to do?”

“Literally anything else.” Pikachu rolled his eyes. “They don’t even need us exactly to stand here. We’re two of…how many versions of us exist here again?”

“Point taken, but—”

“But nothing.” Pikachu motioned for Fox to follow him. “Palutena is going to have a bunch of us at her temple.”

“To do what?”

“I don’t know, socialize?” Pikachu continued walking. “Look, you can stand here and wait in your numbered spot, if you want. But, I’d rather relax and play with my friends than just…sit here.”

Glancing back at the barren sky, Fox spun around as another portal opened in the sky. A goddess with flowing green hair rose up.

“How is it you mortals start these sort of things?” Palutena tapped her cheek, and then shrugged. “Ah, whatever. Come on, let’s party!”

Bewildered, Fox shook his head and walked behind Pikachu, as they both followed the massive crowd through the portal.

Entering a vast structure in the heavens above, Fox and Pikachu stepped onto a grassy cliff. A smaller mouse scurried over to them and excited grabbed at Pikachu.

“Pikachu, Pikachu!” The tiny mouse bounced around. “Come on, come on! Kirby’s going to play with me and Jigglypuff! And he’s bringing Meta Knight too!”

“Aw, that’s really cute, Pichu…wait, Meta Knight?” Pikachu grinned. “This, I’ve got to see.” He turned back to Fox. “See you later, Number 7.”

“Later, Number 8.”

“Maybe that trainer will let the other Pokemon play with us too!”

“As long as he’s not stuffing us in balls, sounds good.”

Fox waved as the Pokemon hurried across the bridge. They bumped a black-winged angel off, who flapped his wings and floated back onto the wooden planks.

“Hey! Watch it!”

“Aw, don’t be so angry, Pittoo.” Palutena floated to him, spiraling her staff around. “Come on, relax, enjoy yourself instead of brooding for once.”

“It’s not brooding, it’s thinking quietly.”

“Sure, right.”

“Don’t you have an angel of your own to annoy?”

“He got selected to battle, or didn’t you hear those other god hands choose him?” Palutena laughed. “That means I get to boss you around in his place!”

“Not happening.”

“You’re not refusing a goddess, are you, Pittoo?”

“My name is Dark Pit!”

“…That really, really doesn’t sound much better.”

Fox stifled a laugh and hopped from the cliff, down to the next, and walked over to a flat platform between it and another grassy cliff. He gazed out at the golden clouds and smiled before turning and sitting by the water’s edge, listening to the cascading waterfall flow down below him.

“Yo, Fox!”

Glancing up, Fox watched as a blue bird flipped backwards off of a cloud, leaping down and landing on the grass below. He popped back up, waved his wing with a wink, and walked over.

“Falco, hey.” Fox waved, and then pointed past him. “You do know there was a ladder that you could’ve taken, right?”

“Yeah, but wasn’t that way more stylish?” Falco rubbed a wing over his beak. “That’s much more my speed, you know?”

“If you want to break your feet some day, sure.” Fox chuckled as Falco sat beside him. “So, what are you up to around here?”

“Nothing much, just enjoying a nice perch.”

“Leave to Falco to find a high spot to hang from,” teased Fox.

“What can I say?” Falco smirked. “I do prefer the air.”

“Oh, not that again.”

“Come on, it’s a great line!” Falco puffed out his chest. “It’s really…me, you know?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Don’t be jealous because I’m the one with more personality,” mocked Falco. “That’s why a lot of people get into this place, you know. Go ask that spunky princess, the blonde fighter guy, or that blue vested vampire guy.”

“Vampire killer, I think.”

“Whatever, they hang out with a vampire either way.”

“True.” Fox blinked. “Speaking of, have you seen Krystal?”

“Nope.”

“…You…don’t sound all that concerned about her.”

“Why should I?” Falco shrugged. “She’s not really the same as us, you know?”

“Hey, she can fight just the same—”

“As in from the same point in our universe, Fox.”

“Ah. Well…wait, what do you mean?”

“You know, that whole, uh…how did the others put it…?” Falco waved his wings around. “The chronology thing! How she’s from this set era based on a time that we never existed in. It’s not really hers either, but it’s from that adventure.”

“An adventure of ours that we’ve never been on?”

“There, that!” Falco grinned, as Fox tilted his head. “…Don’t look at me like that. You remember going to the dinosaur planet, Sauria?”

“No, but…I don’t remember a lot of things that I’m supposed to around here.” Fox rubbed his head. “Something about space alien species known as Aparoids, Andross having a grandson, it’s all…I don’t know, foreign?”

“Includes Krystal,” reminded Falco.

“Look, just because we don’t really recognize her and she doesn’t really understand why we’re different doesn’t mean that we should treat her like she doesn’t belong with us.” Fox lowered his eyes as Falco folded his arms. “Come on, don’t be like that.”

“She’s weird, just admit it.”

“Different, not weird,” corrected Fox.

“Call it what you want.” Falco shrugged. “Anywho, that’s neither here nor there. At least she has herself around here. Peppy being a big handsome penguin with a bunny headband is weird.”

“Yeah, you’ve got…wait, what?”

“I mean, I know it’s not really him, but—”

“Whoa, whoa, back it up.” Fox pointed at Falco. “Did you just utter ‘handsome’ about that big penguin guy?”

“…No?”

“Pretty sure my hearing is one of the best around here.”

“Pretty sure you’re crazy.”

“Falco.”

“Ok, maybe I did!” Falco hopped up from Fox’s side. “So what?”

“Are you into him?”

“Into who?”

“That penguin.” Fox tapped at his chin. “I think he’s…Dedede?”

“ _King_ Dedede.”

“Holy crap, you do have a crush on him.”

“Do not!” Falco blushed and twisted away. “It’s not like it’s that big of a deal.”

“Are you so offended by me knowing?”

“Knowing what?!”

“That you like the king.”

“Which?” Falco snapped his beak shut and twisted back, eyes widened. “Uh…what?!”

“…You like more than one of them?”

“No!” Falco twisted back and placed his hands on his hips. “Where do you even get off with those ideas?”

“Well, the only red spots of your feathers are around your eyes, not your cheeks.” Fox pointed at Falco’s brightened face. “Also, I think even your beak is glowing a bit from—”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“Aw, that’s so cute.” Fox blinked. “Hang on, did you like Peppy before—?”

“Ew, no!” Falco fumed. “Enough, Fox!”

“So…if King Dedede is one…” Fox snapped his fingers. “Oh, that King K. Rool guy, he’s another one, huh?”

“Gross, no way!” Falco stomped his foot. “Come off it, Fox!”

“Wow, you are.” Fox smirked. “The penguin I get, birds of a feather and all that. But the crocodile?”

“What?! What’s wrong with him?!” Falco shifted his eyes back and forth wildly. “Uh, not that I care.”

“Hmm.” Fox’s grin broadened. “Do you have a thing for big guys, Falco? I didn’t think you had a particular type.”

“I don’t!”

“You sure?”

“Shut up, Fox!”

“Hey, do you like that Wario guy too?”

“Are you serious?!” Falco scooped Fox up by his jacket. “Ooh, I could clobber you myself, here and now!”

“Think that role is reserved for me.”

Both pilots spiraled around as a third stood on the cliffs above them, smirking a toothy grin.

“Wolf!”

“Saved by the rival.” Falco sighed, and blinked, releasing Fox. “Not…not that I needed that.”

“Good, because I’m not here to rescue you from your embarrassing heavy guy crushes,” mocked Wolf.

“Oh, come on!”

“What the hell do you want, Wolf?!”

“Just keeping tabs on you, same as always, Fox.” Wolf spun away. “Carry on, you two, gossiping like those psychic kids and villagers about silly crushes.”

Running off, Wolf cackled as he hurried away. Tightening his hands to fists, Fox jerked up from the ground.

“Fox, he’s absolutely baiting you,” cautioned Falco. “What for is beyond me, but that’s definitely bait.”

“Maybe so, but I’m not just going to let him go around causing trouble whenever or wherever he wants.” Fox jumped up to the cliff. “If anyone can stop him, it’s me!”

“You get him, Fox!” Falco rubbed behind his head as Fox twisted around, shooting his teammate an inquisitive look. “Uh…what?”

“You’re not coming?”

“Um…you, uh, you want me to?”

“…You’re waiting for that penguin, aren’t you?”

“No!”

“Whatever, I can handle Wolf on my own.”

“Hey, Fox!”

Running across the bridge, Fox charged after Wolf, who disappeared past the fountain. Hopping down from a ledge as three princesses giggled and whispered with one another near an actual temple, he surged past them, swinging down past another ledge.

“Hey, watch where you’re going, tough guy!” The princess in yellow and orange placed her hands on her hips, glaring after him. “My girlfriends and I don’t appreciate you just running amuck, got it?”

“Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt the gal pals.”

“ _Girlfriends_.”

“Right, that’s what—” Wolf clasped his mouth shut. “Oh. …Huh. My mistake. Carry on and enjoy, ladies.”

Grinning, he hopped down to a pit below, falling past a hall and down to a cavern dungeon. A blue frog and a red tiger were chattering together there.

“Ok, so the cave was a less, uh…intimate than I imagined,” admitted the tiger. “That’s my bad.”

“It’s double your bad, Incineroar, because I told you this place wasn’t a nice spot,” grumbled the frog. “I’ve been here before, you haven’t.”

“Sorry, for the third time already, Greninja!” Incineroar folded his arms. “Look, I just thought somewhere darker might be cozier for us than…” He shuddered. “…Cozier than anywhere near the waterfalls.”

“Or the fountain,” insisted Greninja. “Those were nicer spots!”

“Boy oh boy, I do love interrupting couples today.” Both jerked around and glared at Wolf, who grinned and waved at them. “Hello, fellow evildoers.”

“In our world, ‘evil’ is a description of mysterious types that people don’t understand, including our own kind,” snapped the frog. “It’s not the same as in yours at all.”

“Right, sure.”

“What do you want, Wolf?”

“Ooh, you know me!” Wolf placed his hand over his chest. “I’m touched, kitty-cat.”

“It’s Incineroar,” snapped Greninja. “Quit being condescending.”

“So defensive of your partner,” teased Wolf. “How sweet.”

“If you don’t want me to pound you out of the stratosphere, you’ll choose your next words carefully.” Incineroar growled.

“Come on, we all know you’re a big softie.”

“I’m not,” warned Greninja.

“No, you…you’re rougher.” Wolf grinned. “Like me.”

“What?”

“You two and I should team up once in a while,” offered Wolf. “After all, I’ve got an assassin on my team back where I’m from, like you, froggie.” Wolf beamed as Greninja rolled his eyes. “And you, well…apparently, I have worked with a big cat before. Maybe not as meaty, and maybe not to my recollection, but—”

“Not interested.” Incineroar smirked. “Like you called it, I’m the big softie. Folks may like me fooling around with the bad guys for show, but I’m not about to roll with one like you outside of one.”

“…Huh. First time that one backfired on me.”

“Wolf!”

Twisting back with a jump, Wolf lowered his eyes as Fox growled at him from above.

“Sorry, boys, looks like I’ve got to run.” He grinned back to them. “Enjoy your date. Offer’s open whenever you like.”

“It’ll stay open,” both Pokemon fired back simultaneously.

Hopping up onto an orange spring, Wolf flew up and past Fox, bouncing onto another spring and upwards again.

“Get back here!”

Jumping onto the spring, Fox chased after him. Incineroar and Greninja blinked athe two disappearing pilots and glanced back to each other.

“Fountain of Dreams would have been a much nicer spot to be right now,” insisted Greninja. “We could have had a relaxing evening there.”

“Oh, here we go.” Incineroar sighed and rolled his eyes. “Babe, what part of ‘Fire Type’ don’t you get?”

Fox carried on after Wolf, but stopped short as he climbed up to the fountain. A monkey in a cap and shirt walked past him.

“Oh, hey! Uh…Diddy Kong!” Fox hurried to the monkey. “Listen, can you help me catch Wolf? I need to—”

“Wolf?! He’s here, in this place?!”

Jerking back, Fox blinked at the monkey. His eyes were lowered and he grinned darkly.

“Star Fox, I’m certainly not about to help you over my, ah…leader.”

“…So…you not wearing red…is because…?” Fox blinked. “Are you ok, Diddy?”

“It’s Andrew, Fox!”

“…Ah.” Fox nodded. “In that case…”

Grabbing the monkey by the shirt, Fox flung him out past the bridge and spiraling away from the skies, as the chimp screamed out and fell away.

“You’re lucky that doesn’t kill you,” called Fox with a wave. Twisting back, he gazed past the fountain. “Now…after Wolf.”

Clawing his way up platforms past the temple, Wolf leapt up and to the shrine that hovered above the smaller temple. He rushed to the altar, where Palutena talked with a blue haired woman.

“So then, I rushed back through time to go help my father, and put a stop to the fell dragon once and for all.” The woman blinked, and unsheathed her sword. “Lady Palutena! Be wary. A beast approaches.”

“What?” Palutena turned around. “Oh, you.” She smiled. “Wolf, wasn’t it?”

“That’s right.” Wolf rested his hands on his knees. “I’m going to need your help, ah, Lady Palutena.”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard right.” He picked himself back up. “Come on, get me a portal that goes to the other big crowd, off at that cave.”

“The one below? I think there’s only a couple down there.”

“The _other_ cave, not even here.” Wolf paused and waved a fist up and down. “You know, where that, uh…that penguin comes from.”

“Oh, the Great Cave.” Palutena nodded, and turned back to the woman. “Sorry, where were you with the story, Lucina?”

“Hey, I introduced you to her! The whole ‘mortal above the rest like Link,’ wasn’t it? They’re the two that catch your eye the most.” Wolf folded his arms. “You owe me.”

“I believe you’ve forgotten that I’m goddess,” reminded Palutena, maintaining her smile as she whipped back to Wolf. “I don’t owe you anything.”

“But don’t you want to help out a poor, troubled creature like me?”

“You have me confused with the other goddess who takes in nature’s strays.”

“Come on, I need to get somewhere where I can get lost with a partner of mine.”

“Oh, him.” Palutena giggled. “That much I could arrange. Just give me a moment to get the Hands’ attention and permission.”

“…Don’t you use your own powers here?”

“Not quite. This place isn’t the same as my home.” Palutena tapped at the altar. “I can use some magic here, but the Hands are the ones in control.” She turned and raised her staff. “Ok, we should be good.”

“Wait, that quick?”

“I may be limited here, but I _am_ a goddess.”

A portal opened across the sky and Wolf gazed in at the castle and grass structures over lava. He smirked as he heard someone groan and crawl up the shrine.

“Wolf!”

“Thanks a bundle, then, goddess!” Wolf rushed through the portal. “Don’t keep me waiting, Fox!”

“Get back here!”

Running after Wolf, Fox disappeared through the portal as it sealed away from the heavenly skies. Palutena sighed and flipped her hair.

“My apologies, Lucina.” The swordswoman gawked at her as she leaned against the altar. “Now, you went through time to catch up with Chrom, right? I think he’s with Robin past the tower now, if you want to go see those men…well, you know their bonds, I’m sure.”

Jumping out of the portal over the castle and landing on the platform over the lava, Fox whirled around, spotting Wolf as he flipped down from a ledge past the palm trees.

“Catch me if you can, McCloud!”

“Damn it, Wolf!”

Flipping past women with guns, with one blowing a kiss to the other, Fox and Wolf descended across the platforms, jumping down deeper into the cave.

“Mind the mine carts, Fox,” cautioned Wolf.

“What do you care?!”

“A lot.”

“What?!”

“Come on, let’s—”

“No, enough of this!”

Tackling Wolf, the two canine pilots dropped past a burning wall and crashed down onto a tile ramp. Eying the track that ascended past the cannon, Wolf exhaled, and grunted as Fox pinned him to the floor.

“Start talking, Wolf!” Fox growled. “What are you up to?”

“Never thought you’d end up on top between us,” teased Wolf.

“Wuh…what?!”

“Lighten up, Fox.” Wolf pushed Fox from atop him. “Come on, let’s go somewhere else.”

“Oh no, I didn’t chase you from one stage to another to just…talk!”

“Hey, I’m the one that wanted to come here to do just that.”

“…Come again?”

“Nuh-uh.” Wolf wagged his finger. “Come on, follow me. Before we get run over…”

Ambling down the ramp, Wolf beckoned Fox to follow. Raising an eyebrow, glancing back for the cart, Fox shook his head and followed Wolf down the ramp. Ahead of them, past the platforms before the castle, stood a boy in an cyan tunic.

“Oh, isn’t that one of the Links?” Fox waved to him.

“Fox, hold on—”

“Hello there, Link!”

Twisting around, the boy grinned happily. He plucked a bomb out and hopped forward at Wolf and Fox.

“…Does he normally do that?”

“No!”

“Didn’t think so.”

Jumping out, Wolf kicked the boy back, knocking his bomb away. Grinning still, the boy hopped up, and bounced away along the ramp of railway tracks.

“Kids with bombs are scary, but that was outright terrifying,” murmured Wolf. “You good, Fox?”

“What was wrong with him?!”

“That wasn’t actually a Link, Fox.” Wolf scratched his head. “Aren’t you used to this world, yet?”

“You say that like you are!”

“Kind of am.”

“How?!”

“We’re Spirits, Fox. It’s not like we’re actually who we are.”

“…Come again?”

“Look, I’m not explaining this on the tracks.” Wolf jumped down and past the buried castle walls. “Let’s go this way.”

Raising an eyebrow, Fox followed Wolf along, and they walked past the castle’s pillars. Ahead, beyond the platform, were a man and monster.

“Isn’t that Bowser and Mario?” Fox pointed at the two.

“Don’t try greeting them,” warned Wolf. He glanced at the pair and exhaled, brushing his head. “Well, at least they’re the usual two.”

“Huh?”

“Just shut up and listen.”

Blinking, Fox looked from Wolf and back to the duo. Mario watched as Bowser took his hand, and guided him to the tiled platforms below the lava ceiling.

“Come on, just look at that!” Bowser grinned to Mario. “That’s such a look for my castle, and it’d be perfect!”

“While I admit that a lava infested castle sounds like it should belong to you, I’m pretty happy that it’s not yours.”

“Mario, come on.” Bowser lifted his arms and flopped them down. “This place should be mine, not Dedede’s or Kirby’s or whoever.”

“Meta Knight’s?”

“Sure, him. Though he owns a whole battleship, so he doesn’t care about this place.”

“I’m not sure if any of them do, really.”

“All the more reason it should have been my castle!”

“You did get a few places that look like it,” reminded Mario. He guided Bowser back by the hand, and pointed at the castle walls. “Besides, look at the windows of…are those stained glass or something else?”

“They look like clay.”

“Weird.” Mario shook his head. “Anyway! This place isn’t really the best location, is it? It’s so hard to find anyone around here, it’s too spacious, and would you really want your castle to be so marred by tons of lava spots where touching them could practically kill you?”

“…That literally sounds like my castle, so, yes.”

“Ugh, Bowser…” Mario brushed a hand over his head. “Ok, look, I admit that you should have a better place to call your home—”

“Thank you!”

“But, you and I can share nicer spots around the Mushroom Kingdom stages.” Mario took both of Bowser’s hands into his own. “Isn’t that be nicer than, I don’t know, a huge mess like this place?”

“Maybe.” Bowser sighed. “I just don’t like sharing them with…let’s see, three princesses, one of my plants, each of the seven Koopalings, the alternate reality version of you as a doctor—”

“Ok, it’s strange, I know, but we have a lot of places that feel like home for all of us,” reasoned Mario. “Out of those places, you and I can always find somewhere that’s just right for, well, us.”

“…And Junior, and your brother—”

“Bowser.”

“Yeah, those two I don’t mind as much.” He chuckled as Mario nudged his stomach. “Sorry, sorry. You’re right, I just don’t like admitting it.” He shrugged. “So, you want to get out of here?”

“We need to wait for someone to get us out of here.” Mario scratched behind his head. “Besides, you said you wanted me to model some of the new costumes for you?”

“Ooh, can you bring those out from here?” Bowser clapped his hands together. “Your wedding tuxedo is a lot hotter than I like admitting to.”

“Wait, what?!”

Mario and Bowser spiraled around as Wolf groaned, pushing Fox down from their sight.

“These places have no privacy at all,” muttered Bowser. Louder, he grumbled out, “What do you want, Wolf?”

“Nothing from you, Bowser.” He sheepishly grinned. “Just admiring you and yours.”

“Super. Admire us another time and give us our minute alone, will you?”

“Sure thing, buddy.”

“We’re not buddies.”

“We’re definitely buddies.”

“Get lost, already.”

Chuckling, Wolf slid down from the pillar and pulled Fox away. Tugging his arm free, Fox pointed back in the couple’s direction.

“I have several questions.”

“Spirits, Fox.” Wolf rolled his visible eye, and ambled away from the buried castle walls. “That literally answers everything.”

“It does not!”

“We’re Spirits that are based on the lot of our different universes and all mashed together here to fight and mingle otherwise, while also preventing the fabric of reality from being disrupted and causing a calamity across all of our homes from our joining.” Wolf’s shoulders slumped as Fox’s mouth parted open. “How does that not make sense to you?”

“You sounded smart.”

“Ouch. Thanks.”

Spotting the Young Link in cyan ride a mine cart down holding a bomb, Wolf grabbed Fox again, and dragged him across the platforms in front of the castle. They waited as the mine cart crashed on the platform above them, rattled off past, and crashed into the walls behind them.

“Is he going to be—?”

“He’s fine.” Wolf tugged Fox on again. “Quit acting like you don’t know how this place works, Fox. Didn’t you lob a monkey off the bridge earlier?”

“You saw that?”

“Hey, you were supposed to be chasing me.” Wolf chuckled. “Had to know why you stopped.”

“He was acting like Oikonny from home.”

“Ah.” Wolf shook his head. “I don’t know why multiple versions of me ever even recruited him. I get that it was mostly Andross’s meddling, but—”

“Speaking of, we’re through, by the way.” Fox pulled from Wolf again. “You helped them with killing my father, and you’re still my enemy.”

“Based on him, not him,” reiterated Wolf. “Is it that hard to get?”

“Doesn’t matter to me.” Fox shook his head. “You’re a Wolf through and through after all.”

“A Wolf that has memories of multiple lives and origins, Fox.” He chased after Fox, as the two hopped past a platform near blue and purple crystals. “There’s a world, a galaxy, where you and I have allied with one another. Multiple times.”

“That’s got to be a lie.”

“It’s not!” Fox turned back as Wolf paused. “It…it’s not. You know about that…uh, that alternate version of the Lylat that Krystal yammers about?”

“You know her name?”

“She’s one of us!” Wolf shuddered. “Even if I do find that creepy to admit out loud.”

“Go on.”

“Huh? Oh.” Wolf cleared his throat. “That place, the one with the, um…the Aparoids.” Wolf took Fox’s hand. “You and I were side-by-side in that place.”

“And…you remember that?”

“Well…no.”

“So much for multiple memories—”

“Look, Fox.” Wolf watched as Fox jumped down by the bottom section of crystal shards, and hopped after him. “Please, I’m trying to—”

“Trying what, Wolf?!” Fox spiraled around. “What do you even want?”

“This version of me holds the memories of a Wolf that held some kind of basis on that Wolf.” Wolf dragged his claw over his face. “That sounded so much better in my head.”

“Did it?”

“Fox, the Wolf that was a Trophy, from this universe…” Wolf paused and straightened his posture. “You know how we’re all assigned numbers and we’re meant to be based on fighters that were previously from this place, right?”

“What, like how I’m Number 7 out of…however many we are again?”

“Yes, yes, that!” Wolf grinned, more genuinely than his usual kind. “You’re Number 7, and I’m Number 44. We’re the basis of fighters that the Master Hand has had clash before in this place. And I don’t get that very much, but I know of the Wolf that was a Trophy before me, one that was lost years ago.”

“They lost a few before, and only some were found during the last gathering of everyone,” recalled Fox. Wolf raised an eyebrow to him, and Fox turned away. “I paid attention to the stories, I just…don’t really understand them that well. Or the ones that keep calling me one of the Original 8, like that should mean something to me.”

“It does in this universe, Fox.” Wolf grabbed his hand again. “And that’s the weird thing, because I know you have some of those memories instilled into you, just like I do.”

“Uh…well, I sort of—”

“You do! I already know you do!” Wolf pointed back. “That’s why you can pick up on so many names and recognize faces quickly. Mario’s like an old friend even though he looks nothing like us, right?”

“He…feels that way, sure, but—”

“But nothing!” Wolf shook Fox’s hands again. “This is what I mean. These versions of us, we’re…we are, but we’re not who we are.” He smiled again. “That means we have the freedom to pursue what we want when we’re not part of the battles, not part of the show.” His lips curled up further. “Why do you think we’ve hurried past so many pairs earlier?”

“What? Those princesses, Mario with Bowser—?”

“Even Falco crushing on some weird type interest he developed.” Wolf nodded. “That’s all part of the freedoms we do have here, the will to choose how we go forward from who we’re supposed to shadow, and who we want to be.”

“That’s a really weird concept.”

“Is it, though?” Wolf folded his arms. “Come on, don’t act like you feel entirely comfortable around even Falco.”

“He’s my good friend and teammate,” defended Fox. “We belong together.”

“There’s nothing about him that seems odd?” Wolf snorted. “Besides the crushes.”

“Well…not weird enough—”

“But there are differences to what you think you know about him!” Wolf pointed at Fox. “And, and, he has those weird lines that he brings up that he swears up and down—”

“That he’s used countless times before,” finished Fox. He blinked and gazed at the shards. “…Like it’s something we’ve talked about plenty of times already, but I don’t even remember him saying them.”

“ _Exactly_!”

“Still…” Fox folded his arms. “I don’t think…I mean, we are like that, but…Falco—”

“No, no, Falco’s served his purpose for my point, leave him to his one-sided lusting.” Fox opened his mouth, but Wolf covered it. “He barely knows any of them, and I know for a fact that King K. Rool has eyes more for Ridley and Donkey Kong over Falco, so that’s definitely a lost cause.” Wolf dropped his hand away. “Us so-called villains tend to get lumped together, even though you’ve already seen that I’m not exactly the best of friends with them.”

“Bowser likes you.”

“No he doesn’t.”

“He could’ve been a _lot_ angrier at us before.” Fox smirked. “I think he does like you.”

“And again, you feel like you know him, don’t you?” Wolf placed his hands on his hips as Fox’s arms fell, and he slowly nodded. “It’s because your Spirit is imbued with the memories of the Fox, or the Foxes, that came before you.”

“It really doesn’t sound any more normal the more you repeat that,” deadpanned Fox.

“Fine, sorry.” Wolf shrugged. “Anyway, my point is that, when we’re not being forced to face off against each other…why don’t you and I…get to know one another better, as we are here?”

“…You have no friends.”

“Not really where I was going with that.”

“You want stable friends that are more familiar to you than your villain buddies.”

“Sort of on the right track, yes.” Wolf sighed. “Fox, whether we like to admit it or not, we’re close, and connected.” Fox opened his mouth. “Yes we are, don’t argue it.” Fox shut his mouth. “Look, can we just…try something different?”

“For what? For us, or for…for who Fox and Wolf are supposed to be?”

“Uh…both?” Wolf scratched his cheek and nodded. “Both, let’s go with both.”

“So…what do you want to be?” Fox huffed and rolled his eyes. “Like Mario and Bowser back there?”

“Why not?”

“Because we’re not a couple!”

“Why not?”

“Because we’re…we’re…”

“Not enemies.” Wolf held up his finger and wagged it. “We’re supposed to be, especially when we’re on display. But who we are…who we want to be…we don’t have to follow that design set for us.”

“So, what, you want to be boyfriends?” Fox shot up an eyebrow. “What, am I supposed to believe that you’ve been attracted to me all this time?”

“…Well—”

“Oh, come on.”

“You’ve got really pretty eyes. Emeralds.”

“Wolf.”

“A _really nice_ figure all around too—”

“Wolf!”

“What? I’m catching you up to speed.”

“But…but we’re not…” Fox’s cheeks fired up. “…You really like my eyes?”

“Sure, the eyes are the compliment you liked.”

“ _Wolf_!”

“Yes, ok?!” Wolf laughed and placed a claw on Fox’s shoulder. “…Yes.” He sighed. “I can’t get rid of this…this gnawing feeling in my mind. I want to be with you, and for some reason…I don’t know, being at your side feels…right.”

“…Which Wolf is that one based on?”

“I don’t know.” Wolf shrugged. “I don’t know if it’s the past Wolf’s thoughts, the current Wolf’s thoughts, some foreign iteration of me, or…or if it’s what I came up with myself.” Wolf sighed. “I just…I feel some weird sense of peace with you. Familiarity. Nostalgia. I don’t know what it is, but it calms me.” He sighed, brushing his arm over his reddened face. “You ever get that?”

“…Usually with Falco, honestly, but…” Fox rubbed behind his neck. “I’d be lying if I denied having those feelings around you too.”

“…So…”

“…This is absolutely insane, but…”

“Is Fox McCloud thinking about a life with me?”

“Thinking about it.” Fox groaned as Wolf beamed. “Don’t make me regret that.”

“You won’t, promise.”

Wolf kissed Fox’s cheek, to which Fox jumped. He backed away as Wolf tilted his head at him.

“What? Boyfriends kiss.”

“We’re not boyfriends!”

“Not yet.”

“…Yet…”

“Fox?”

“…Somehow…this feels…”

“…Familiar?”

“Yeah.” Fox frowned. “Why?”

“I don’t know.” Wolf touched his chest. “My heart pounds harder around you than anyone else, but that feels somehow like it’s supposed to be that way.”

“When I’m with you, I just thought that my fur standing on edge was because we’re supposed to be enemies.” Fox gazed down. “But it feels that way now, and I don’t feel like fighting with you, so…that’s not the case, is it?”

“Maybe it is. And maybe we’re perverting who we’re meant to be after all.”

“But then why should we do it?”

“Because it’s our choice.” Wolf closed the distance between them. “Maybe you don’t want to be with me, Fox, and that’s fine. But I like this, because we get to pick that we want to be together. And nothing feels like a greater middle finger to what destiny dictates us to be than to being with someone who’s meant to be your enemy.”

“…Where the hell did you pull all of that from?”

“Ah, well, I, uh…I might have listened to Chrom and Robin talking about their feelings and stories and…I don’t know, how their big romance started.” Wolf shrugged. “Everyone thought Chrom could only feel that way about the woman Robin, but he acted like that around the man Robin as well, or one form of him did, so…the two of them are why a lot of us questioned who we can be.”

“…So Robin and Chrom’s relationship spawned all of this?”

“No, not quite…but it did help a lot of us wonder.” Wolf cleared his throat. “At least, I did happen to pick up on it from them, and then went around, you know, observing—”

“Spying.”

“Not really…ok, fine, yes, I spied on others.” Wolf shrugged. “Sue me. It helped me come up with all of these thoughts.”

“…How many others?”

“Not that many.”

“All of the other villains?”

“Well, a lot of them, namely Bowser and K. Rool, but not all of them.” Wolf groaned. “Can we just get back to what we want to do?” Wolf rested his arms on Fox’s shoulders. “Tell me: do you want to try this, whatever we have…do you want to be with me?”

“That’s…oddly polite of you.”

“I’m a jerk, but I’ve got a little bit of heart.” Wolf chuckled. “It’s just buried away.”

“Like this castle?”

“Um…sure.”

“Ok then.” Fox slowly exhaled. “Then…maybe I can…unearth it?”

They paused for a moment. Then, Wolf cracked a smile and snorted.

“Don’t—”

“What?”

“You’re ruining my only moment.”

“That was cute.”

“Oh, shut up.”

“Make me.”

“Gladly.”

Grabbing Wolf’s cheeks, Fox hesitated, and the two gazed at one another. Slowly, he guided his face into Wolf’s, as they closed their eyes, and pressed their lips together. Wolf wrapped his arms around Fox’s back, as Fox’s hands slid down Wolf’s face and around his shoulders. Gently, they broke apart, and opened their eyes, staring into one another again, and slightly smiling.

“Finally.”

Both pilots jerked forward and whirled around, glancing at the cliff above them. A white and purple cat rolled its eyes while a black and blue jackal lightly clapped his paws together.

“That only took, what, an hour?”

“Mewtwo, hush.”

“How…how long were you listening?” Fox poked his head past Wolf’s, as the larger canine faced away from their interlopers. “And why are you still?”

“You interrupted our date,” deadpanned Mewtwo. “The least Lucario and I could do was intrude on yours.”

“Hush.” Lucario smiled to the pair below. “I thought the whole thing was really adorable. A great confession sequence, and a true proclamation of love! Your auras were dancing with such a delight when you finally came together—”

“Quit overselling it, their minds were messes.”

“It was sweet and sincere, Mewtwo.”

“It was a disaster that was barely averted.”

“Uh…thank…you?” Fox tilted his head. “…Are you two just going to stay up there, or…?”

“No, we’re leaving.”

“What?!”

“Lucario, we’re leaving. You got to see them kiss, they’re a couple, we’re going somewhere else now.”

“But…but we could do more cute things too!” Lucario tugged at his partner as Mewtwo drifted away. “Double date! Wouldn’t that be nice?”

“If we get Incineroar and Greninja with us, we can.”

“Ok, then a triple date!”

“No, Lucario.”

“But it’s creative! You like creative things!”

“Not like that.”

“But it uses imagination and your mind! Mewtwo, wait up! Can’t we talk a little more about this? Hey, wait for me!”

Fox waited and listened as the two disappeared up the cave. He sighed and chuckled, returning his attention to Wolf.

“So, uh…how’d it feel to have your favorite role reversed?”

“I’m an asshole.”

“It’s not that bad.”

“Fox, you don’t get it.” Wolf buried his head into Fox’s shoulder. “Oh, I’ve done that so many times, and now…how could I have been such a foul, rotten—?”

“You’re not going to change, are you?”

“Nope, interloping is fun.” Wolf picked his head up and grinned. “That’s how I got you after me, isn’t it?”

“That’s not…oh, forget it.” Fox tugged Wolf along. “Come on, let’s move up the cave and look for a nicer spot near the crystal shards.”

“Isn’t this one good?”

“Not with those giant spikes hanging off the wall, no.”

“Giant…?” Wolf turned and his ears twitched. “Oh yeah, those.”

“We should make like those other two and head somewhere else.” Fox pulled Wolf along. “Let’s go.”

“Ha.” Wolf followed him along. “Lead the way, Fox.”

Both smirked at one another as they climbed up the Great Cave, searching for a spot to settle for a little while. They held one another’s hands all the while, and remained together throughout the night.

**Author's Note:**

> You mean you made it? Hey, kudos to you! Doubly so if this didn't bend your brain backwards!
> 
> So, yeah, I figured that, since Spirits are technically not the same as the characters they were based on, they could do and love as they pleased. (I think it's canon that the Smash characters are never actually themselves, but rather based on dolls or trophies; it's a concept of a kid bringing all of their toys together and having them go at it, according to the creator, as I recall.) Spirits especially make things fun, given that they use the roster for their host bodies, because then you can just add on characters that otherwise wouldn't be as interesting.
> 
> Since that was the overarching idea, I decided to have some shenanigans. Talking Pokemon? Yep. Enemies dating each other? You got it. Random portals that appear and launch you across the cosmos? Make it so. (Pretty sure this has all been done before across the Super Smash archive, right? Probably.)
> 
> Fox and Wolf are probably the most common couple among those for this story, but I guess that's what makes them fun to follow: the familiarity of their tango, but rearranged in terms of Smash. Also, I felt that Wolf would be the more curious one to discover things and present them, since this is only his second go-around, while Fox has done this several times over and is basically used to these things.
> 
> As for Falco's random crushes, no, there's no logical explanation there. Basically looked over the roster and went, "Aw, there's no other birds for...oh wait, King Dedede." And that evolved from there to what we have here. It's the role for him you never knew you wanted: the bachelor with strange tastes in dudes from other universes. (He likes them big too. You're welcome.)
> 
> Honestly, I have a fair number of wittier post-story lines that I shared on Tumblr to further explain choices and cameos for this story, so I'll add that link below here.
> 
> I don't know if it'll show up, because I've had hyperlinks disappear on me before, but hopefully it'll remain. If not, then you can find this story under the same title on my blog, which has a similar name to my user name. (EchoEternally instead of EternallyEcho. I'm very clever, yes, I know.)
> 
> But, other than that, you're good to go from here. Thank you very much for reading!
> 
> (https://echoeternally.tumblr.com/post/181997808679/fanfic-gift-smash-a-spirited-story)


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